Following Tuesday’s release of iOS 11.2.5, which brought HomePod support, Siri news, and a fix for the Messages text bomb, Apple has offered preview access to iOS 11.3, which will include assorted nifty new features, including a toggle for CPU throttling on phones old batteries.
Following the iOS 11.3 update, Apple says users will now be able to see their overall battery health, and will recommend if it needs to be serviced. You will also be told if your battery is triggering a chip slowdown, and can choose to turn that feature off. The switch will only be available for iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone SE, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus.
Other new features include the following:
– iCloud Messages: This offers the choice to opt in to Messages on iCloud. The feature, in turn, frees up space on your device and syncs messages between all your iOS and macOS devices. Sign into a new device and see your whole Messages history right away. Delete a message on one device and it’s gone from each device.
– ARKit 1.5: Apple has stated that the new ARKit will be able to recognize and place virtual objects on vertical surfaces such as walls and doors, as well as map non-square surfaces such as circular tables.
– Animoji: iPhone X users will get access to four new Animoji in iOS 11.3. The units are a bear, a lion, a dragon, and a skull.
– Business chat: Apple will add a new feature to Messages called Business Chat that will let users communicate directly with businesses, including Discover, Hilton, Lowe’s, and Wells Fargo. The company says customers will be able to schedule service appointments or make purchases without sharing contact information.
– Health Records: This is a new feature in Health Records that allows users to enter their password and collect health data from various institutions and organize the it into a single view. This also includes notifications for lab results, medications, conditions.
– Videos in Music and News: Among the other additions in iOS 11.3 will be music videos inside Apple Music and news video clips inside Apple News.
– HomeKit: The update will include an update to Apple’s HomeKit software, albeit no specific changes have been mentioned as of yet.
AML: iOS 11.3 will support Advanced Mobile Location (AML). This is a feature used primarily across Europe that will automatically turn on location services and text your location to emergency responders when you call emergency services.
Apple has indicated that iOS 11.3 will be released “this spring” and thus far, only the first beta has been issued to developers.
If you’re interested in trying out the iOS 11.3 beta, head over to beta.apple.com on the device you’d like to try the beta on. You can enroll there, and download a special profile that will allow your device to download the beta releases. After that, new beta releases will be delivered just as regular iOS updates are: you’ll get a notification when one is ready, and can check manually by going to Settings > General > Software Update.
Via Macworld and beta.apple.com